Advancing Women Entrepreneurs Phase Two launched in Gulu

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GULU - The second edition of the Advancing Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program, an initiative by MTN Uganda, has been launched in Gulu to empower female entrepreneurs by integrating them into the company's supply chain.

Sylvia Mulinge, the chief executive officer of MTN Uganda, while launching the AWE phase II at UNIFAT primary school in Gulu city, said that they started the AWE program two years ago to solve problems that many women in business are facing, like mentorship, exposure and access to affordable financing.

She added that through mentorship, the campaign provides women-led businesses with capacity building in terms of training them on procurement, how to run their businesses and how to manage their books of accounts. The project also provides access to financial services, including specialised support from partners like dfcu Bank.

“AWE aims to build the capacity of women-owned businesses, helping them to scale and win corporate contracts. We are inviting all women who want to get into the digital space to apply by visiting our website”, she said while addressing different stakeholders.

Mulinge noted that women who participated in the first cohort are now part of the teams building for MTN fibre infrastructure as a business, putting up solar panels in their towers across the country, many were given tenders in terms of contracts worth sh15 billion.

Mulinge said they started AWE with only 15 women, but now 118 women who own and lead businesses are registered with MTN Uganda, which, according to them, has produced a lot of impacts. “When you raise women, you have raised family and society, and that is what we are happy about”.

Sylvia Mulinge, the chief executive officer of MTN Uganda (second left), Dorothy Kabagambe Ssemanda, CEO ATC Uganda (extreme right) and Annette Kiconco, chief retail banking Officer DFCU bank, handing over a certificate of appreciation to Stella Lunkuse, the founder and managing director of Solar Nation Limited, for being one of the best women in business from AWE phase I cohort. (Photo by Jackson Kitara)

She said for women in business to benefit, they must have at least 50% of their business owned in terms of shareholding, the business must be operational for at least one year, register the business with a book of accounts and be tax compliant.

Mulinge explained that “we want to break the narrative of societal cultural belief and mindset that women cannot do a job which has traditionally been done by men. Through AWE, we are breaking those paradigms and creating shifts that are referred to as driving the change because many women have embraced engineering jobs and are forming a model for young girls who are still in high schools, tertiary institutions and university”.

Sharon Nyaika, project lead AWE MTN Uganda, said they started the program in October 2023 to serve all women-led entrepreneurs across all regions of Uganda, where 200 applicants applied and those who were successful were trained, mentored and had access to financial services.



She said mentorship and affordable financing are key for women in business to help them rise and grow. She said, according to a study shown by the World Bank, Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) and Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), men-owned firms earn 2.5 times more than women-owned firms and are significantly larger and more profitable than women-owned firms.

Nyaika said the study also shows that fewer than 10% of the women entrepreneurs run businesses in a male-dominated sector, and only 1% of women-led businesses bid for tenders, which AWE should be an answer to the challenge.

Annette Kiconco, Chief Retail Banking Officer dfcu bank said they partnered with MTN AWE because they are supporting women in business under the Women in Business, which they started in 2007.

She said to date, over 80,000 women in their sphere of businesses were given financial support, capacity building and mentoring services.

“As dfcu Bank, we have been at the forefront of advancing and promoting women and women-owned businesses. We chose MTN AWE because this is the space where women can actually start to play a huge part and start to make a meaningful contribution in the world of technology and digital innovation”, Kiconco said.

Kiconco said they provided financing of sh1.6 billion to the first MTN AWE cohort to help them execute contracts that they have been able to fulfil both for MTN and ATC, and will continue to work with the AWE phase II cohort.

“Women are not short of skills and capacity, but the platform and MTN AWE is here to give them the opportunity to have accessible financing and have full potential”, Kiconco remarked.

Dorothy Kabagambe Ssemanda, CEO ATC Uganda, said they partnered with MTN Uganda to create work for women-led businesses in the space of technology and ensure that they carve out work for women-led businesses.

She said they have worked with eight women-led businesses and sh8 billion has been awarded to them. She said these women are upgrading power systems and installing solar on towers, which ensures that they create women-led businesses in technology.

Beneficiaries' accounts:

Stella Lunkuse, the founder and managing director of Solar Nation Limited, said she left her accounting job and entrepreneurship. Through AWE, she received some training on entrepreneurship and later got a contract to supply solar units for all MTN towers across the country.

Lunkuse said her firm has connected more than 8,000 households with Solar, connected fibre from Malaba to Kampala, installed 80 solar sites for MTN Uganda and built 12 irrigation system sites for the government.

She said she employed 36 staff from four, and their salaries have been increased as they are getting more contracts to install solar. She said their revenue has increased by 6% in 2024 and 12% this year.

Rita Nakanzi, the CEO Kevmark Investment Limited, said she was trained on how to get businesses and be visible to other companies.

She said through the AWE, her business has grown and now employs eight women from two 

“I am now fully empowered and exposed. I can now come out proudly to look for business, initially I couldn't speak in public like this”, Nakanzi said.

Alfred Okwonga, the Mayor of Gulu city, requested that MTN Uganda invest more in women in northern Uganda to move them out of poverty.

He requested special attention to women in northern Uganda so that they can benefit, grow and increase their household’s income.

Okwonga said Gulu is ready and open for any investment that brings development because people still live in poverty.

“I will knock on your door, requesting you to mentor women in Gulu so that they are empowered in doing their business”, he remarked.